As the Colorado Rockies look to put together a more solid bullpen heading into next season, the ballclub should be looking for a veteran arm or two. Some relievers performed well last season, while others have past success despite a down year.

Would the Rockies' front office consider adding unrestricted free agent Jose Alvarado to the staff? Alvarado could come into the team and provide some experienced pitching in an area that definitely needs improvement.

According to his Spotrac profile, Alvarado signed a three-year, $22 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, including a $50,000 signing bonus, $22 million guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $7,333,333. Back on May 18, 2025, Alvarado was suspended 80 games for violating the league's PED policy.

He joined Philadelphia in a trade in December 2020, according to his Baseball Reference profile, from the Tampa Bay Rays as part of a three-team deal. Philadelphia sent Garrett Cleavinger to the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Dodgers sent Dillion Paulson and a player to be named later to Tampa Bay.

Alvarado played his first four seasons with the Rays, followed by the last six seasons with the Phillies. He was a valuable bullpen asset during the Phillies' 2022 run to be the National League representative in the World Series.

In 10 years of MLB service, he has a 24-31 win-loss record with a career 3.80 ERA. Alvarado has 53 career saves, too. He's appeared in 476 career MLB games between the Rays and Philadelphia.

Last season in Philadelphia, Alvarado just didn't put things together. He finished with a 5-4 record with a hefty 5.86 ERA. Alvarado only picked up one save for the entire MLB season, and the Phillies saw no reason to keep him around.

Alvarado really leans into using a sinker and cutter when he's on the mound, according to his Baseball Savant profile. He'll occasionally throw in a curveball or four-seamer, but his bread-and-butter pitches are that sinker and cutter. From 2017, his use of the sinker rocketed into a fourth dimension of usage. 

After a tick down in usage in 2022, Alvarado started trusting that pitch a whole lot more and began to highlight it in his usage. His arm angle shot up from 57 degrees in 2022 to 63 and 65 degrees in the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Alvarado lowered it back down to 59 degrees and 58 degrees in the past two seasons.

Last season, he hummed in that sinker at home plate on 97.8 mph. His limited-use four-seamer got up there at 97.2 mph. The cutter averages 91.5 mph, too.

Alvarado needs to return to his previous form. He could use some attention from Rockies pitching coach Ethan Katz. It might be challenging to pitch in Coors Field, but Alvarado could get a look from Colorado before next season.